DON’T SETTLE WHERE YOU ARE AND GET STUCK. TURN OFF THE TV AND INVEST IN YOURSELF.

GOSPEL CORNER

15/08/24

JOEL OSTEEN MINISTRIES
TODAY’S WORD

Today’s Scripture
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
Philippians 3:12, NIV

KEEP GROWING
God has put more in you than you can even imagine. You have gifts and talents that nobody else has. You have a responsibility not only to God, not only to your family, but also to yourself to develop what He’s put in you. Whether you’re nine or ninety years old, you should constantly be learning, improving your skills, and getting better at what you do. With the Internet, books, schools, and seminars, there is more knowledge available today than any time in history. Don’t settle where you are and get stuck. Turn off the TV and invest in yourself.

Too often we sit back and think, “God, I’m waiting on You for that big break.” That’s the wrong attitude. The people who get the big breaks are people who are prepared, who develop their skills continuously. You have to be proactive to take these steps to grow. When God sees you doing your part and developing what He’s given you, He’ll do His part and open doors that no man can shut.

A Prayer for Today
“Father, thank You for the treasure You put inside me—the talents and the potential—and all of the opportunities You provide for my growth. I don’t want to coast through life relying on what I’ve already learned, but I want to do everything I can to develop my gifts and potential. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”

There are many believers who are defeated because they are struggling to qualify for God’s blessings through their own works. What you need to understand is that self-effort will rob you of reigning in life by God’s grace.

You cannot earn your salvation, healing, or financial breakthrough by your own efforts. If the greatest miracle—being saved and made alive with Jesus—comes by grace through faith, and not by your works, how much more the lesser miracles, such as healing, provision, and restored marriages?

It is not about your work or performance, but Jesus’ work and performance. Only His work is a finished work. And not only did He sit down at the Father’s right hand, but today’s Scripture states that He also made us sit with Jesus!

What does this mean? Well, my friend, “sitting down” in the Bible is a picture of the believer resting in the perfect and finished work of Jesus. Christ has finished all the work on the cross on your behalf and is now seated at the right hand of God.

As it has all been accomplished on your behalf, this means that you can stop depending on your self-efforts to earn and qualify for God’s blessings in your life. You can sit down with Jesus at the Father’s right hand!

Now, listen carefully to what I am saying. I am not advocating a life of passiveness and laziness regarding the study of God’s Word, prayer, or worship. When it comes to success in your job, I’m also certainly not saying that you shouldn’t be diligent or seeking to develop your abilities. God’s grace does not make you lazy and unproductive.

On the contrary, it makes you labor more abundantly for His glory. The apostle Paul, a preacher of God’s grace and the finished work of Jesus, said that he “labored more abundantly than they all” (1 Cor. 15:10).

What you need to realize is, in the new covenant, God’s way is to bless you first, and the knowledge of His blessing then empowers you to labor more abundantly. In other words, we do not labor to be blessed, but rather we have the power to labor because we are already blessed. Can you see the different premise for laboring in the new covenant?

My friend, Jesus has accomplished everything for us on the cross. Our part is to trust in His perfect work. Receive with open arms His abundance of grace and His gift of righteousness, and sit down and begin to reign in life through Him.

Today, let it be your prayer that you will stop trying to earn God’s grace and righteousness. Let the Holy Spirit teach you to start depending on Jesus’ finished work and to start receiving by His grace. This is God’s way to success, wholeness, and victorious living!